📖 Meaning
This idiom describes speaking in a vague, obscure, or evasive manner, where one deliberately keeps one's words unclear. It implies that the speaker is being noncommittal or hiding something, avoiding direct or straightforward expression. The variant form 隐约其辞 is also commonly used.
📜 Origin Story
Unlike many classical chengyu rooted in a specific historical text, 隐约其词 is a later-formed compound expression without a single definitive literary source. Its components are well attested in classical usage: 隐约 appears in early texts meaning 'indistinct' or 'obscure,' while 其词 refers to 'one's words.' Over time the phrase came to be used in vernacular and modern writing to describe deliberate vagueness in speech. It is also commonly written as 隐约其辞. Today it is frequently used in journalistic and literary contexts to describe someone who avoids giving a clear answer.
💡 Example Usage
面对记者的追问，他只是隐约其词，不肯明确表态。
Faced with the reporter's pressing questions, he merely spoke in vague terms, refusing to state a clear position.
🏷️ Category
➕ Similar Idioms
➖ Opposite Idioms
🔤 Quick Facts
- Chinese: 隐约其词
- Pinyin: yǐn yuē qí cí
- Literal Translation: hidden, indistinct, one's, words
- Category: Communication
- Characters: 4